Fe2O3-decoration and multilayer structure design of Ti3C2 MXene materials toward strong and broadband absorption of electromagnetic waves in the X-band region

Although strong and effective absorption of electromagnetic waves in the X-band region is of utmost importance for practical applications, it still faces many challenges. In this work, we prepared Fe 2 O 3 -decorated Ti 3 C 2 composites via a facile one-step solvothermal route. Scanning electron microscopy micrographs showed that Fe 2 O 3 particles effectively cover the Ti 3 C 2 surface and insert into the Ti 3 C 2 layers. X-ray diffraction patterns demonstrated that the Fe 2 O 3 particles are beneficial for the Ti 3 C 2 delamination. A high attenuation constant and suitable impedance matching enabled wide-range microwave absorption properties; however, the minimum reflection loss was relatively high. To achieve both wide bandwidth and strong absorption, we designed a multi-layered structural absorber. When the thickness was 1.9 mm, the fourfold-layered structural absorber exhibited the optimal absorption properties with the minimum RL value of − 49.68 dB at 9.922 GHz and RL less than − 10.82 dB in the entire X-band region. Therefore, the synthesized multi-layered structural Ti 3 C 2 /Fe 2 O 3 composites can be used for practical applications as a high-performance microwave absorber in the X-band region.